Rhianon Passmore | |
|---|---|
 Passmore in 2016 | |
| Member of the Senedd for Islwyn | |
| Assumed office 6 May 2016 | |
| Preceded by | Gwyn R Price |
| Majority | 5,239 (21.4%) |
| Caerphilly County Borough Councillor for Risca East | |
| In office 10 June 2004 –16 October 2016 [1] | |
| Preceded by | Harry Styles |
| Succeeded by | Arianna Passmore |
| Personal details | |
| Political party | Labour Co-operative |
Rhianon Passmore is a Welsh Labour and Co-operative politician. Since May 2016,she has been the Member of the Senedd for Islwyn.
Passmore was elected to represent Risca east on Caerphilly County Borough Council in 2004,defeating incumbent Plaid Cymru councillor Harry Styles. [2] [3] [4] She was re-elected at elections in 2008 and 2012,before standing down in 2016 after her election to the Senedd. [3] [1] Her daughter,Arianna Passmore,successfully contested the by-election on her resignation. [5]
Passmore stood unsuccessfully on Labour party lists for Mid and West Wales at the 2003 Welsh Assembly elections [6] and for South Wales East in the 2007 elections. In July 2015,Passmore was selected as the Welsh Labour and Co-operative Party candidate for the Islwyn constituency of the Senedd. [7] On 5 May 2016,she was elected with 10,050 votes (45.0% of votes cast). [8] She was re-elected in 2021 with a majority of 5,239 votes. [9]
Passmore is a member of the Finance Committee,Petitions Committee and Public Accounts and Public Administration Committee. She chairs the cross-party group on Music,and a member of groups on Armed Forces and Cadets and Lung Health. [10]
Passmore was briefly suspended from the Labour group in the Senedd on 26 June 2024 after she was alleged to have used several number plates on her car,which is a criminal offence. The suspension was lifted in under 24 hours after a police investigation ruled that there was no evidence for this claim and that no offence had been committed. [11]
In October 2017 she was arrested by South Wales Police after failing to provide a breath test;as a result she was banned from driving for 20 months,fined £1,000,£100 victim surcharge and £620 in costs. [12] Passmore alleged she was not unwilling to provide a sample,but physically unable due to her asthma,and a lack of access to her asthma medication. [13] She was also suspended from the National Assembly for a fortnight and was suspended by the Labour Group from 10 July 2018 until 1 October 2018. [14] [15]
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